Latest virus to take advantage of Microsoft shortcuts vulnerability

Microsoft is looking into a family of malware that is using a Windows flaw to infiltrate critical infrastructure and other systems in a number of countries.

The malware, which has been labeled ‘Stuxnet’ by security researchers, has been seen in the wild in India, Iran, the US and Indonesia, Microsoft said in a blog. One of the attack vectors Stuxnet uses is via USB stick. The malware requires no user interaction to infect the system. The operating system merely rendering an icon launches the malware.

The malware first injects a backdoor into the system, and then drops two Trojans: a rootkit and various pieces of code, including drivers.

The malware takes advantage of the shortcut facility in a number of Microsoft operating systems, including versions of Windows 7. Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008 and Windows XP SP3 versions are also among those affected.

SecureIT’s Malware team has released updates to all clients this week to protect against this threat, and continues to research the samples of this infection daily. Microsoft has identified the vulnerability and has some workarounds available, but does not have a patch for the issue to date.